


Beauty

by Causa



Category: Steven Universe (Cartoon)
Genre: F/F, F/M, Talking
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-04-03
Updated: 2015-05-12
Packaged: 2018-03-21 03:19:00
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 12
Words: 13,443
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3675441
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Causa/pseuds/Causa
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>"Your mother saw the beauty in everything."</p><p>How the Crystal Gems came to be, from Pearl's perspective</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Anxiety

Pearl had known from a young age that she was defective. She was weaker than the other gems, and more "excitable." That was what Hematite had said, and Pearl knew it was a euphemism for the neuroticism that plagued her near constantly. As a youngling she had startled too easily at loud sounds, and been thrown into a panic by suddenness. As she grew she could reign in fairly well her nervousness–that is, hide her crawling insides from others–and as she aged she gained the reputation of someone of great intelligence, her vast historical knowledge and analytical prowess impressing the most high-up. This reputation eventually led to her being granted a position by the Authority itself, a sort of junior tactician position in which she, with several others, picked the planets they were to target. The pressure proved too much for her and after a botched operation and subsequent breakdown she was respectfully relegated to a secretarial position. They had told her that with time she could, perhaps, return to her old one. At first her work made her deeply ashamed, but she came to find calm in the filing and sorting and alphabetizing and began to establish a comforting routine. Thus it was quite upsetting when she was first approached by Rose Quartz.  
  
Pearl had seen her before, around the buildings. Rose left an imprint wherever she went and whispers followed her; most were positive, a few disparaging. She was one of the select few who had been chosen to evaluate Earth, and all knew she was quite intrigued by its customs. She was beautiful and passionate and her presence was captivating; when she appeared in the grey doorway the office was filled with warmth. Her long, bright tresses fell in ringlets past her radiant skin and strong shoulders down to the curves of her hips. Her smile calmed Pearl's rising pulse.  
  
"Hello there."  
  
Her voice was the loveliest thing Pearl had ever heard, resolute and resonant.  
  
"Pearl—right?"  
  
Pearl rose from her chair, face flushed. "Ah—yes. How can I help you?"  
  
Rose's laugh was sonorous and savory and she wanted to listen to it for days and days.  
  
"You're so polite. Oh, but I'm not here on behalf of anyone, except myself. I just had to tell someone about something I found and I think you're the only one I can talk to about it."  
  
"I—I'm sorry," Pearl said, for they had never spoken before (except, perhaps, in passing.) "You must have me confused for someone else."  
  
There was that beautiful laugh again. Keep talking. Anything to hear that laugh again.  
  
"I know we haven't met," said Rose, "but I—well, everybody knows how skilled you are with—let me show you. Come with me."  
  
Her excitement was so powerful that Pearl felt herself propelled out of the chair and after the woman, who took her hand with fervor and led her out into the courtyard-her hand was so soft. Pearl noticed she had a bag with her. They sat across from each other in the shade; Rose took a board from her bag and spread it over the table. Then she removed with her delicate fingers pieces, one by one, and placed them carefully onto what she had laid out. She spoke excitedly.  
  
"It's a game—a human strategy game."  
  
Pearl nodded.  
  
"I really want someone to play it with me—will you?"  
  
"Sure," Pearl said instantly. Rose Quartz explained the rules to her. Pearl let her win the first time. Rose realized this and told her not to do so; so Pearl won the second time. Each day thereafter, at the same time, Rose would come into Pearl's office with the pieces and board set up on the table. Pearl would leave her desk to play. Eventually Rose began issuing challenges which Pearl gladly accepted: a set of only small pieces versus a full set; starting the game with half her pieces captured; starting the game with only 3. She won them all.  
  
"Brilliant. You're brilliant."  
  
Never had Pearl felt so accomplished as when Rose bestowed that compliment to her.  
  
"No, no," she said, blushing. "It's just simple simulations."  
  
"I've been planning my moves for four days now, all the possible ones, and you saw through them all."  
  
Pearl laughed. "Well…"  
  
"Okay, I've got one more for today."  
  
Rose set up the pieces. "Now I know you can get out of this situation easily. But I want you to do it with as few enemy captures as possible."  
  
Pearl had never seen Rose so serious. Her smile had vanished.  
  
"Alright."  
  
Pearl had started with 9 of 16 pieces and ended with 6; Rose, of course, ended with none.  
  
"I'm impressed," said Rose.  
  
Pearl, having mentally retraced her movements, groaned and put her head in her hands, heart pounding, mind racing, how stupid, how did you not see? It was so obvious. "I could've saved that one."  
  
Rose took her hand—it was still so soft—and smiled warmly. "It's alright. It's only your first time.  
  
And you did better than I did—much, much better," she added.  
  
The next day when Rose came to her office at the same time as she always did the bag she always held was not with her. Pearl felt her breaths shorten.  
  
"I need to ask you something very important," Rose said, looking intently into Pearl's eyes.  
  
"O–Okay."  
  
Rose did not stop coming towards her until she could feel Rose's warm breath on her cheek. Rose grasped her hands.  
  
"I want you come to Earth with me."  
  
"Okay," Pearl said instantly.  
  
Rose laughed. "Wonderful! Then let's leave, right now."  
  
"Right _now_?" repeated Pearl. "Is–Is that allowed?"  
  
"I already asked," she replied.  
  
So they left immediately. Pearl had never left Homeworld, and the thought of leaving would've set her mind ablaze except Rose was there, and Rose was the temper, the calm, the presence that soothed her rushing nerves and allowed her to stand and close her eyes and relax, knowing that when she opened them Rose would be there, right there.


	2. Exposure

When they stepped out of the warp pad Rose turned to Pearl and smiled wide. 

"The air! Oh, it feels so good, doesn't it?" 

Pearl noticed some slight moisture on her skin; as they went out in the open air she felt the wind. It was odd, she thought, but if Rose liked it, it must have been something wonderful. It was simply that Pearl was as of yet too unsophisticated to appreciate it. 

She felt that way about most of the things Rose showed her. The spread of verdant fields, which Rose loved to run across, struck Pearl as empty and in need of covering; the humans, whom Rose loved to interact with, Pearl found clumsy and crude. 

"You don't seem impressed," Rose said softly when they were alone. 

"I-I am," stammered Pearl, "I just haven't seen enough yet." 

Rose took her hands eagerly. "Oh, I know the perfect thing!" 

Rose led her wordlessly through the dark meadow until a group of people surrounding a poorly-lit bonfire were in view. 

"Watch," Rose said, eyes ablaze. 

The humans were moving, some by themselves, some holding each other. There was loud chanting and roaring and laughing and most of their movings were clumsy and chaotic, but there were a few–lithe like herself–who moved with poise and grace, each step and gentle wave of the arm flowing into the next like a waterfall draining into its basin. She watched them, committing their motion to memory; she would try it herself, sometime, perhaps. After the sun rose Rose turned to her and said, "Aren't they wonderful?" 

"Their movements are interesting," said Pearl. She had seen something not entirely unlike it in books, old, dusty, bound books that she shouldn't have been reading. But this was different: less focused, but more captivating—so it appeared. 

Rose laughed again, that beautiful sound, and said excitedly, "I haven't spoken with this group before. But I've been watching them lately and I think I've almost got a grasp of their language. I'm going to try talking to them soon."

Rose grasped Pearl's hand, looking at her with solemn eyes. "I see them here and all I see is their potential. They have so much potential. So many great things will come out of this place—I know it." 

Pearl did not get that impression, but Rose had clearly seen more of them than she had. She nodded. 

"Now I have to show you something," Rose said. "It's a bit of a walk." 

The two walked through the rise and set of several suns; Rose wanted to know more about Pearl and told her about herself. 

"So how did you come to work for the Authority?" she asked. 

"Oh, I–I don't know," Pearl said, linking her hands, "I got lucky, I guess." And then you ruined any chance of ever impressing them, ever doing something great for Homeworld, by being foolish.

"Don't sell yourself short," said Rose. "With the mind you've got, it's no wonder…I'm the lucky one, anyway. I'm so glad they gave me the chance to come here. I can't believe how different things would be if I'd never come here. Isn't it funny how that works?" 

Pearl nodded, but she had never done anything she hadn't planned to do—except for this, which wasn't a mistake, but wasn't what she thought it would be. 

"How did you?" Pearl asked. 

"Come here?" said Rose. "Well, they announced to my group that there was a new planet to investigate. I volunteered. And here I am. I tell them what I see. But they're not nearly as thrilled as I am about this species." 

"I don't understand why the Authority would want to take Earth anyway," muttered Pearl. "It's a relatively small planet."

"Small, but it is rich in—" Rose stopped herself and shook her head. "Not that it matters. The humans deserve a chance." 

Pearl nodded. If Rose thought they had potential, they almost certainly did. 

"But the Authority doesn't care." Rose's face darkened. "It takes what it wants. Sure, gems are great, but to think we're the only ones who deserve to be everywhere—anywhere—it's—"

She stopped, her voice breaking and shoulders sagging. Pearl felt she should say or do something, but did not know what. She put an awkward hand on the woman's back.

"I'm sorry," said Rose. "It's so…The audacity of Homeworld is startling sometimes. We're almost there."

Pearl nodded again. They walked in near-silence until Rose said, "You know how gem reproduction works, right?" 

The day she learned about gene replication something in Pearl's mind clicked. At least she knew why she was different—malfunctioned coding. Pearl nodded. 

"Of course you do," said Rose, stopping, turning, and placing her strong hands on Pearl's shoulders. She felt warmth through her body like a current. 

"What I'm about to tell you—show you—is secret. Very secret. You can't tell anyone."

"Of–Of course," said Pearl. 

"The Authority found a way to mass-manufacture gems. Instead of the usual time it only takes a year, and they've got gems working to make it even faster. The resulting gems will be defective–at least it's more likely. But the Authority doesn't care, as long as it's got someone to claim its planets."

"O…Oh." 

Pearl was getting hotter and her breaths were getting shorter and her mind was buzzing quicker and she could not process the sound of the wind and the feel of the air and the rock beneath her feet that cracked and crumbled crookedly and nothing was straight, nothing was in its place—why was she here? Where was she? She didn't even know. 

"Pearl? Are you alright?" 

Rose's arms were around her and she was shaking and she wanted to melt into Rose's skin and stay there but instead she was here, crying and muttering nothings and feeling the wet air on her skin and the dust of the dirt in her lungs. 

"I—I'm sorry," she mumbled, sighing. 

"Oh, it's alright, it's alright," said Rose, and her voice was soft and soothing. "I know it's a lot to take in."

Once Pearl had caught her breath Rose led her to a precipice, then jumped down into the dark. Pearl followed her. Once her eyes adjusted she could see it all; the machines, the holes in the scattered earth, the faint glow of the gems underneath and around them. 

"They're calling it Kindergarden," said Rose quietly. "I want to destroy it."


	3. Change

When they returned to Homeworld Pearl could not relax. She felt constantly tense; her heart leapt each time the door opened and she broke into tears upon realizing she had placed a file out of order. She, to the best of her ability, did not let Rose Quartz see this; the beautiful woman came by each day with her bag and they played as usual, but Rose spoke to her throughout the game. 

"I visited the humans again and I talked to that new group…they were so happy to see me."

"You'll have to come back with me soon. I found a wonderful place to watch the sunset."

"I'm thinking of going before the Authority personally and asking them to destroy Kindergarden. In the mean time, I'm finding people who are sympathetic to our cause."

Pearl's stomach fluttered—our. Our. She and Rose, sharing a common goal—someone as spectacular as Rose, and herself, together. Rose had grouped them herself. 

"How are your combat skills, Pearl?" 

Pearl let out sardonic laughter before covering her mouth. 

"I—I completed Basic like everyone else," she said, blushing, "but I…barely. It's not my—I'm not good at it." 

Rose reached across the table and took her trembling hand. "Don't say that. Anyone can be good at it. You just have to practice, and—be taught properly. Basic was no help to me, but my tutor was…I'll help you out the same way she helped me." 

If Rose thought it was important, it was important. 

"O–Okay," she said. "Thank you."

"Are you alright, Pearl? You seem so wound up." Her eyes were soft as she stroked Pearl's hand with her thumb, sending sparks through Pearl's body, making her shiver and blush. 

"I–I–yes," she stammered. 

Rose eyed her warily and they resumed their game. 

That evening Pearl found herself in Hematite's office. 

"What seems to be the problem?" the grey gem asked. Her voice was fairly flat and Pearl was unsure if she was annoyed or exhausted from a day of seeing others like her or happy to see her. 

"I–I've been very stressed," said Pearl. 

"More than usual?" 

Hematite punched a button on the screen in front of her. 

"Yes," Pearl said.

She punched another button. 

"Has anything new come into your life?" 

"Apart from the job change—is that recent?"

"Does it feel recent?"

"I–I guess not." 

"Anything else?"

Pearl's blush became deeper. "I met someone. She doesn't make me nervous, though, she–" 

Pearl did not finish her sentence. Hematite nodded and wrote on the screen in front of her again. 

"If you can't pinpoint the cause of the stress and remove it," said Hematite, "then I cannot help you. Have you done the breathing ex–"

"Yes," said Pearl impatiently. 

"Then there's nothing I can do for you. Unless you'd like to try the experimental—"

"I'd rather not," Pearl said abruptly. 

"If this keeps interfering with your work you ought to try it," Hematite said. "Otherwise, that's all I can do."

Pearl nodded and thanked her quietly and left, not meeting eyes with the next gem who stepped in Hematite's office. 

That night she locked the door to her office and, after sitting in her chair for some time counting her breaths, she stood in the center of the room and extended her arms, flicked her wrists, bent her knees, pointed her toes, at first mimicking but eventually and easily—to her surprise—surpassing the grace of the humans she saw that day. She moved and spun and leapt and landed, losing track of time until she startled when Rose knocked on the door. 

"You look like you've been busy," said Rose with a smile. 

"I was dancing," said Pearl, smiling in return. 

"Oh?" said Rose, clapping her hands. "Wonderful! That's wonderful. I'm so glad." 

Pearl noticed that Rose did not have her bag. 

"I thought instead of practicing strategy we could practice combat," said Rose. She was always using the phrase 'combat,' thought Pearl. "We can do it on Earth. I already got permission to go there. Come on." 

Rose grabbed her hand. Pearl wondered how aware she was of her rushing pulse. 

Rose used a different warp pad this time and when they reached Earth the sky was pink and the green ground's sides were covered by rock, except for the path ahead. 

"It's a bit of a hike," said Rose. Pearl did not mind. 

The two walked for several hours. 

"Do you know about fusions, Pearl?"

" _Gem_ fusions?" repeated Pearl, her voice high. "I've read about them." 

How she would be punished if they knew she had read about them—but the curiosity around the derisive whisper got to be too great. The thought of it made her uncomfortable; being so close to another—not having one's own space—sounded dreadful. 

"I've never fused with anyone before," said Rose. 

"Why would you need to?" said Pearl. "You're so strong."

It occurred to Pearl, then, that she had never seen Rose in combat. She blushed. 

"I wonder what it would be like," responded Rose. "It would be such an experience. Possibly a good weapon as well." She chuckled. "Oh, but I don't know, really. It's just something I'd like to try someday." 

Rose then told her about a group of humans she had befriended—they sounded lovely. 

The two stopped walking when they reached the mountain in front of them. 

"Just a climb up and then we'll be there," said Rose. 

Pearl had never climbed anything before. 

"You can do it," Rose said with a smile. Pearl did do it, though she was out of breath when she reached the top. 

"You'll get used to it. Follow me."

Rose grabbed Pearl's hand and led her forward until they reached a room within a cavern, a large pink podium in its center. Rose approached it. 

"I had a friend make this for me," she said, "but she wasn't sure what she was doing. More than I'd be, but…well, I hope it works." 

She placed her palm upon it and a plate of armor appeared before them. 

"Wow," said Pearl. 

Rose grimaced. "That's not what I wanted." 

The armor disappeared and a set of maces appeared in its place. Then the maces disappeared and a group of swords levitated before them. 

"I'm thinking you're a sword type," said Rose with a small smile. "But they're good to start with either way." 

Rose handed Pearl a small blade with a black handle. She took it carefully; it felt light in her hand. Rose selected a similar-looking blade of her own and took several steps back. 

"So, we're going to start with the basics. When you stand, make sure—"

"You–You're not going to give me a history lesson, first?" 

That laugh, that laugh. "Oh, Pearl." 

So Rose told her how to stand—with her weight evenly distributed on both sides—and the two did some basic exercises—parrying and thrusting, getting the rhythm of the movement—before placing the swords back in their invisible holders. Then Pearl tinkered with Rose's podium as she talked to her, until a deer wandered into the cavern. It startled Pearl, and her jumping startled it; Rose giggled and outstretched her hand; the creature approached her slowly and licked her palm. Pearl had never seen anything like it.

"The life on this planet is so beautiful," said Rose. 

Pearl nodded.


	4. Housekeeping

When Pearl was working, before she became in charge of the filing, she had heard her coworkers discussing Earth—how it was ripe with opportunity, how it was destined to become their second home, how it was a waste of time. She had added nothing to the conversation, nodding in agreement when a good point was made. 

She hadn't known, back then, what Rose had thought of it; she hadn't known Rose at all. But the retroactive guilt of her silence weighed heavily on her—at least she knew what it was that was causing her agitation. 

Whenever she would feel the panic coming coming on while alone in her office she would shut the door and dance; when she grew tired of that she would take out her spear and practice. The spear was quite similar to the sword and she used it as such, playing Rose's movements in her mind and doing them herself. Sometimes she would even leap or twirl and strike, and that was when she thought that perhaps Rose wasn't overoptimistic, perhaps Pearl could really fight, and could learn to do it well. She needed to. She was not sure why, yet, only that she did. Rose had not told her, as Rose, herself, had not yet formulated a plan she could stick to. 

"I'm not sure what to do," Rose said to Pearl as the two sat on a grassy cliff, watching the sun baring down on the busy humans below. "There's no huge hurry. It will be years before the Authority could actually take this place. But they're making more and more gems here every day. And putting more and more of their technology here too." 

Rose sighed and lowered her eyes. Pearl slowly placed a hand on her shoulder. 

"You've been finding more gems, haven't you?"

Not that she had met any of them. She was dreading it, the newness of it. 

"Enough for a small army," Rose said with a long laugh. "But I have nothing cohesive. And I doubt most of them care enough about this place to fight for it—if it came to that." 

"If—If it came to that," Pearl said slowly, "I would protect you." 

"Oh, Pearl." Rose's smile was so lovely; it made Pearl believe herself. "You have been improving."

Pearl's blush darkened. "I've been practicing every day."

"I can tell." 

Rose turned her eyes forward. "I want to do something soon. Whether it's a formal plea or setting up here or both or neither or…I just want to do something." 

She did. Not long after, Rose entered Pearl's office with an energy that infected Pearl, making her giddy with anticipation. Rose took her hands and she felt ecstatic. 

"I've got to show this to you but—absolutely it's between us. Nobody else knows. Not any of the others." 

Pearl followed Rose through the warp pad and down a long path. Pearl noticed the air tasted salty and it was hot. But the noises—pulsing, ebb and flow, sounds coalescing into each other in the most graceful way—Pearl liked the noises. She found out later that it was water—waves of water pushed back and forth by the gravity of the glowing circles in the sky. 

Rose stopped when they went up a hill and reached a large, brown structure. Rose's voice was breathless and triumphant. 

"Don't ask how I got it here—I hardly know myself. It took a long time. But here we are, finally." 

"What is it?" Pearl said. 

"It'll be our base," said Rose. "Our base of operations. And I'll put buildings all beside it and in front of it where the soldiers can stay. If it comes to that." 

Pearl felt her pulse quicken. "It certainly sounds like it's coming to that," she said. 

"I haven't approached the Authority yet," said Rose. "Of course I'll do that before—declaring anything." 

"Of course," repeated Pearl. 

"Not right away, though," said Rose. "I still have to get things together." 

Pearl took it upon herself to organize and straighten their base; whenever she finished her day's work, when she she was sure no one would check on her, she left to carve and clean and find and arrange, making everything outside the inner door to her liking. Rose had told her not to go inside that door—it was a surprise and she was still figuring things out. So Pearl did not go inside it. 

Rose entered her office one day and said, "Tomorrow I'm going before the panel." 

"Should I come with you?" said Pearl. 

Rose sighed. "I don't think that will be necessary, but I have to let you know…if I do this, and they don't agree—I'd be surprised if they do–I'm moving to Earth and if they find out you're associated with me, you'll probably lose your position, and—"

"I'll go wherever you are," Pearl said. 

Rose smiled at Pearl, filling her with warmth. "I thank you. I wonder if others will, too…if even some of them would, we could start preparing to defend Earth, if they do try to take it. And if not, then…well, we'd be on Earth." She sighed, her eyes drooping. "I don't know. I don't know if anyone else…how I would convince anyone else…"

"You're very convincing," said Pearl. "Just tell everyone else what you told me." 

"You think?" said Rose, her dark, large eyes meeting Pearl's. 

"Truly," Pearl said, averting her eyes. Rose's gaze was too intense, too good, too pure, and she couldn't take it. Rose wanted so badly for Earth to have its autonomy; she wanted to protect it. Pearl wanted to protect her. 

"Are you sure you don't want me to go with you?" Pearl asked, clasping and unclasping her hands. 

Rose nodded. "They won't do anything to me. Don't worry." 

So Rose left, and Pearl paced to and fro in her office until she reappeared. 

"I've already talked to everyone I could find," she said, taking Pearl's hand. "We need to go–if you still want to." 

"Of course I do," said Pearl. She took a long and lingering look at her office—the rows upon rows of books that she had read and organized countless times, her small desk in the corner—and she sighed and she left with Rose.


	5. Speech

It was dusk when they reached Rose's base. Outside of it were tents; most were empty, but a few were full. 

"There are some gems I need you to meet," Rose said, stroking her hand as they walked. Pearl tried to steady her breathing. 

"Alright," Pearl said. 

"Ruby and Sapphire—they're absolutely inseparable. It's so sweet. I'm not sure how they met; maybe you can ask them."

Rose looked forward, as though she were taking a count of those they were about to approach. 

"When I took them here for the first time the first thing I showed them was the sunset. And they loved it. And Ruby turned to Sapphire and asked, 'We don't have anything like that on Homeworld, do we?' Like she trusted her implicitly. Like she would have believed her even if she said yes." 

Did Rose want something like that? 

She stopped as they reached the base, which Pearl thought was looking more and more like a house–her house that she had built and styled and furnished. Had Rose been inside it? It occurred to her that it looked nothing like the home of a commander of war ought–but Rose hadn't said anything. 

"I'm going around and talking to everyone," said Rose. "I'll be back soon. Go talk to them in the mean time—I'm thinking of making them generals. You can tell me what you think." 

Rose waved and was gone. Pearl entered. There were two gems standing there, both smaller than her; they were holding hands. 

"Hello," the blue one said. 

"Who are you?" the red one said. 

"My name is Pearl," she said slowly, "and I—"

I don't know what I am, Pearl thought. 

"She's the tactician Rose was talking about," the blue one whispered. 

Her, a tactician? She chuckled. 

"I'm Sapphire," the blue one said, "and she's Ruby. It's a pleasure." 

Ruby nodded, and Pearl smiled at them. The two looked at each other with both passion and contentedness, as though they were blissful to be so close and lamenting they could not be closer. Pearl did not know what it meant to be closer, but she felt as though she was violating their privacy, that she should leave. But Rose had told her to stay. 

"What did you two do before—" Pearl paused "—this?" 

"I was an instructor for the Topaz Unit," Sapphire said to her, her voice soft, "and Ruby worked with Assembly. Our stations were beside each other, so we met one day, and…eventually we heard of Rose." She turned to the gem beside her and smiled. "It was Ruby's idea to seek her out. She showed us the humans and we decided to help." 

Pearl nodded. 

"And you?" the blue gem asked. Pearl was continually surprised by her politeness. She felt herself blush. 

"Oh–I–used to work in Headquarters," Pearl said. 

"Interesting," said the blue gem. 

"Oh, I don't know," Pearl said, and continued chattering nervously, having nothing to do and nothing to fill the silence. She could not be still until Rose returned.

"Is everybody getting along?" she said blithely, smiling at the three of them. 

"Of course," said the blue gem. 

"I want us all to be good friends," said Rose, moving to the center of the room. Pearl took a seat on a nearby chair. 

"At this point, most of this is speculation," said Rose, "but I'm thinking…well, soon I'm going before the Authority to see if we can't strike up some kind of deal. If we can't, and they want to take Earth forcibly…Ruby and Sapphire, you'll be in charge of teaching combat to the others and overseeing them on the ground. Pearl, you'll be in charge of strategy. You three will have to work together, of course, tie into each other. And I'll lead the charge, if they come here." 

Pearl's surroundings were blurring before her. There was talking, inflection, interrogative tones, but what was said she couldn't tell—Sapphire had more questions than Ruby, it seemed. And then Rose was suddenly before her, face in front of her, and she felt pressure on her hands, and coolness on her skin and it was too much, too much. 

"I know it's a lot," Rose's voice, so beautiful and pure rang in her ears, "but you can handle it. I know you can. You're the only person I trust to do this." 

Pearl wanted to say something but could not, nor could she look into Rose's determined eyes. But she made an affirmative motion and Rose smiled, turned, and continued talking—motivational things, things Pearl did not process but did not need to, because Rose's smile was enough.


	6. Fusion

In the following days Pearl established a routine for herself; Rose would leave in the mornings, presumably to check on the gems outside, while Ruby and Sapphire planned, and spoke to and drilled the other gems and Pearl cleaned and read and thought and thought, later gathering more specific information from Rose about their numbers and the speculative numbers of the Authority—"if it came to that," as Rose was too fond of saying. It made Pearl wonder whether Rose was entirely invested in her own plan, if she had any regret and missed Homeworld as much as she did. Then Pearl would chastise herself and return to her work. 

In the afternoons they would work on training, themselves. Rose picked the task and it was always something different. Today it was fusion. Just the mention of it made Pearl blush. 

"I don't know how familiar you are with the concept—I know Pearl is. Basically, two gems combine their strength to form one even stronger gem. I'm not sure how it feels, but I've read accounts…I think it's a useful thing to know, should we be placed into some situation where our abilities aren't enough on their own. Something to have in our back pocket." 

"So, what happens?" said Ruby. "I mean, what happens to your brain?" 

"I'm not sure," said Rose. "I've read that it feels as though you're a combination…you have yourself, but something else there as well. It can always be undone, if you don't like it."

Pearl shuddered. 

"How do we do it?" asked Sapphire. 

"I'm…not entirely sure," said Rose with a laugh. "It seems like if you concentrate on one another and sync your movements it will happen on its own. In the books, it looks like dancing." 

"Dancing?" said Ruby. 

"What the humans do sometimes." Rose smiled at Pearl, who blushed deeper. "Pearl knows more about it than I do. Why don't you give us a demonstration?" 

"Oh, I…I…"

"I'll do it with you." 

Pearl breathed deeply and waited for Rose to set the pace. As she approached her, gliding gracefully, so, too, did Pearl move, twirling on the exhale–once, twice– and leaping on the inhale into Rose's extended arms; she lowered her gently into a dip–Pearl moved delicately, attempting to balance herself while not weighing heavily on her partner. Then she felt weightless, felt as though she was rising and coming into a warm embrace. Euphoria washed over her like waves of sunlight and was so overwhelming that she could not suppress the resulting laughter; when she looked down she saw she had grown in height. She flexed her fingers–more nimble, longer–and stood on her toes; she could feel it all, but every feeling was cushioned by heat and vibration. She could barely focus on what was in front of her–she felt the intensity was pushing her senses to their limits. She could not stop giggling. 

"Do you like it?" Rose's voice and her chuckle, coming from beside her—somehow. She was not in her line of vision but she knew she was there, right beside her. 

"Yes!" Pearl exclaimed. 

"I know it's a lot," Rose said, her voice serene, "but you have to calm down." 

"Sorry," said Pearl, attempting awareness of her location, her breaths, her balance. 

"It's alright." Another beautiful laugh. Pearl tried and failed to stifle her own. 

"Let's focus on something simple—try to walk," said Rose. "I'll start with the left." 

So Pearl looked to her left leg and focused, and it moved; then the right did. 

"Let's head out the door," said Rose; Pearl headed toward the door and on the way saw Ruby and Sapphire's awestruck faces. What was happening around her and inside her she did not know, but she felt so strong and electric and confident and all she cared about was leaving and doing whatever Rose wanted—and she could do it, she could, because Rose was right here, with her, and she was, too, here, now, and ready to do anything. 

The gems Pearl had never really seen before—their army—were leaving their tents, staring at the great being before them. They had never seen anything like her. Of course they hadn't. Now she was waving—was that Rose, or her, or both of them?—and the air beneath her fingers felt like a kiss. 

"Let's summon our weapons," said Rose. 

Pearl focused and she felt the presence of something in both her hands; things that were heavier than a spear. Looking to her left and right, she saw glistening white blades and a golden handle her fingers were wrapped tightly around. 

"Is…this right?" Pearl asked, and heard Rose's beautiful laugh. 

"I remember—or, do you?…the pictures in the book—each gem gets their own. We're our own gem."

Pearl did remember, now, reading something similar. She laughed and struck down a nearby tree out of curiosity; the blades felt weightless when swung. 

"Amazing," said Rose, and Pearl felt like she was glowing. "Let's—"

Rose was interrupted by a loud shout. 

"I'm looking for Rose Quartz of the—"

Pearl stopped listening. Who was this? She had seen many of the gems here before, never talking to them but walking past them, at least—and she had never seen this one. 

"Yes?" Pearl felt her lips move and heard a voice that was neither hers nor Rose's. 

"R–Rose Quartz?" the gem repeated. She–Rose?–nodded. 

"I have a message from Homeworld." 

Homeworld. Homeworld? Homeworld! It was starting. It was starting and there was so much left to do, so much left to prepare, so much left to say and Pearl had done none of it, none of it. The warmth evaporated and she felt chilled. She felt—herself?—shaking violently. What had she been doing with her time? Not enough, not enough whatever it was, because if it was starting then she was not ready. She felt weak and limp and it took everything she could muster not to fall, to fall into the ground below and lie there. She was not ready and they were not ready and the Authority would come at them, come at them with weak force or full force and either way they would die. They would die. Rose would die. She would have left Homeworld for nothing and Rose would die. 

Pearl felt her head shake. 

"Pearl!"

"Rose?" 

"Oh, my—!" 

Pearl felt as though she was electrocuted; something in her jolted out and shocked her and she landed, hard, on the ground below, her body sore and shivering. Rose was beside her, her head down. She held it up and looked at Pearl with wide eyes. 

"Is it like that for you–so often?" 

Pearl could not form words and felt herself on the verge of tears. Rose took the hand closest to her and placed the other arm around Pearl's shoulder. 

"It's alright—We did great for a first time—we—" 

"Rose Quartz?" The messenger stepped toward the two. Pearl moved closer to her. Rose nodded. 

"Your presence is requested before the panel," the gem said. 

Rose stood up and offered Pearl her hand. When Pearl was steady on her feet Rose turned to her and said, "I won't be long." 

Rose began walking toward the warp pad within their base with the messenger, and Pearl followed her. 

"Rose—Rose, let me come with you. What if they—"

"Pearl, I need you here. Look after Ruby and Sapphire." She smiled and stepped into the light, disappearing along with the messenger. There was a large commotion outside that sounded quieter when Pearl moved away; she turned to see an unfamiliar gem before her and leapt.

Rose was gone, and now the other two—what was she to do? What could she do?

"R-Ruby?" she called, her voice shaking. "Sapphire?" 

"It's us," said the gem before her. "We fused." 

"You—you did? Just like that?" 

"It looked cool," the gem said simply. "It is cool." 

"Ah—yes."

The gem did not sound like Ruby or Sapphire, nor did the gem look like either of them. But upon closer inspection, she noticed the blue gem's lips, the red gem's hair, and her other features were a combination of both. It made Pearl wonder what she and Rose had looked like. Rose was gone. Rose was gone and what if she didn't come back? What if this was some trick to take out the opposition's leader? What if it worked? Pearl felt dizzy. She sat on the floor. 

"Where's Rose?" the gem asked. 

"Didn't you see her–? She had to leave. For Homeworld," Pearl said jaggedly. 

"I was distracted," the gem said. 

Pearl's head felt heavy, as did the rest of her limbs. She was able to suppress her groan. 

"Why did she leave?" 

"I don't—Because they told her to," said Pearl with a sigh. "I should've…What if she's being ambushed right now? Why did we trust them?" She put her head in her hands. She noticed a pressure on her shoulder; it was the gem's hand. 

"She won't be," the gem said. 

"How do you know?" Pearl sniffed. 

"I can see many possibilities. Her being attacked is very unlikely." 

"You can?" The challenge of understanding was a welcome distraction. "Which of you is responsible for that?" 

"It's Garnet," the gem said. "Neither. Both of us, together—we both make it." 

"This is the first time you've fused?" Pearl asked. They nodded. Having experienced it, Pearl was unsure whether it was a powerful weapon or terrible distraction. Perhaps it was in between the two, she thought. 

"Yes." 

For her, she amended. She and Rose were good together, she thought, but they could never be as good as these two. Rose. When would she come back? Had it been minutes? Hours? Years? It felt like thousands. It must not have been that long, she thought, for her body still ached. Worrying over this unfamiliar pain exacerbated her worry for Rose and she began to pace to and fro, fidgeting with her hands. 

"What are you doing?" said Garnet. 

"I—I don't know," said Pearl. "It helps."

"Augh! You're stressing me out!" 

"Ruby." 

"I'm sorry," Pearl said, pacing still. 

There were two gems before her now. 

This is the second fusion you've ruined. What made you think you could play a role in this? That you could plan for an entire army? You can't even handle yourself. 

"Pearl, come sit." Sapphire's voice was calm, but it wasn't like Rose's. Rose, who was gone now, possibly forever. 

Pearl did go and sit. 

"Ruby and I have been training most of them with spears," Sapphire said. "Then arrows. A few with the cannons. If that will help you. I…am not sure how detailed you've been since this is all still new." 

Pearl muttered a thanks and clutched her head.

"It's probably only a formal declaration of war."

"Only?" Pearl repeated, trying and failing to quiet her voice. 

"Calm down," said Ruby. "It'll be a long time before they get here."

"You can't possibly know that. You haven't _seen_ their records. I've _seen_ their records. They have an entire army sitting and waiting for things like this."

"Things like one of the millions of planets they could take?" said Ruby. "There's no way the Authority is sending their best to go claiming little Earth. I'm surprised Rose thinks we need so many gems." The red gem crossed her arms. 

"Ruby," said Sapphire, "don't get overconfident."

"I'm not," the red gem said. "I'm just saying—" 

Pearl was calmer, now–if only slightly–so she could think. Assuming Rose returned–and she would: Garnet had said she would and she had her prediction ability which seemed based in logic–then when Rose returned, Pearl would put more emphasis on combat training. She would go around to each of the gems (or simply ask Sapphire), find their strengths and weaknesses, and group them accordingly. The battlefield would be decided soon. She would arrange the groups on a map of the battlefield, then. The strongest should be on the sides, the weakest in the middle–that way the Authority's army would have only the illusion of pushing through, for they would then be cut off by the—but Rose was very much against casualties. That would change everything. But Pearl could do it—she could, she told herself, because Rose thought she could, and Rose had never been wrong.


	7. Vulnerability

When Rose returned, she proved Sapphire correct: the Authority refused to stop targeting Earth, she said, and they would soon attack. Rose took the three of them to what they had agreed would be the battlefield; the air was dewey and sweet and the ground was soft. After Sapphire and Ruby returned to the base, Rose walked alongside Pearl as she surveyed the area, mentally mapping it. 

"I smuggled some wailing stones before I left," said Rose with a mischievous smile that made Pearl feel like she was melting. "I'm going to use them to recruit any last-minute members." 

Pearl nodded and continued walking. 

"This is really happening," Pearl said with a nervous laugh. 

"Don't worry," said Rose. "You, Ruby, and Sapphire will each be in charge of a separate squadron. Pearl, in addition I'll need you to survey the field and make the decisions not on the front line."

Pearl felt as though she was being crushed; her throat was dry and her voice weak. "And where will you be?" 

Rose smiled. "Leading the charge, of course." 

"And I'll be…"

"The way I'm imagining it—there'll be the front, just a long line of our strongest gems. The rest behind them will be split–left, middle, right. You'll be in charge of all of them. That is–well–you'll only be with one of them. But Ruby and Sapphire will defer to you when it comes to their movements. I'll need to show you how to use the cannons. There'll be three in each section."

"I want to be with you," Pearl said, her voice wavering. Rose placed her hand on Pearl's cheek. 

"I know you do," Rose said, "but I need you there." 

Pearl felt fire course through her, hot and angry and threatening to end her existence. 

"No," Pearl yelled, voice reverberant. She pushed Rose's hand away. "No. No. What if—I want to be beside you. I want to _fight_ beside you. I've been training for _years_ —I—" 

She felt her voice breaking. 

"I—" 

Her legs gave out and she fell to the dark ground and sat there motionless. Rose knelt down and took her hands. She spoke softly. 

"Oh, Pearl, I know you have. But I need you there. You'll still be fighting, but it'll be safer. I need you alive because you have to make the decisions—do you understand?" 

"I need _you_ alive!" Pearl shouted, shoulders heaving as she began to sob. "Rose…Rose, you're so important to…" 

She sobbed harder and let herself fall into Rose's arms. 

"The rebellion needs you. Everyone needs you." 

Rose stroked her hair. 

"I won't die, Pearl, and if we do this right then neither will most of us." 

Pearl took a shaky breath. The air was thick. 

Rose stood, then, and took her to somewhere different and told her that this was her last chance to bow out; if she continued now they could never go back home. She could never go back home. Pearl was shocked that Rose thought she had any doubt. 

In the following days Pearl found new materials and tinkered with them for hours straight until she had tested several failed prototypes and discovered a proper way to make her machine; then she made several of them, and a handheld receiver for herself which she stored in her gem. She could observe the battlefield, now, in real time—unless they were shot down. She made more. Then she mapped out different scenarios and strategies, giving them to Rose, who relayed them to the army. In her there was a growing energy; it was not unnerving, nor unpleasant, but it pressured her, motivating her. How dare they come up against Rose? She drilled with Ruby, Sapphire, and Rose, herself, each day thereafter. Her nervousness was quickly being replaced by an anger that consumed her mind at the expense of most else; they would survive—Rose would survive—and they would win. They would win because Rose was the best, better than any Authority member, better than anything, and there was no way someone so strong could have an army that was any less. The outcome was in their hands—in Pearl's hands—and she refused to shape it in any way but that one. She did not fear death anymore because death was not a possibility.


	8. War

When the message came they—all 1,000 of them–went to the battlefield and assumed their positions. Pearl was unable to speak with Rose before their departure, only catching her eye and her smile. That was what she remembered when it started—Rose's beautiful and wide and assured smile. 

She was in the back with Ruby and Sapphire. She had the receiver in one hand and her spear in the other. Everything was still, then there was a flurry of movement, of dust scattering in the wind, of grunts and cries and the sound of crashing weapons and gems that clattered on the ground. It would have been too much, but Pearl had never been so focused. She was able to make several judgements about the army's movements—push left, forward—before having to fight, herself. Then some tall and dark gem appeared before her, angrily brandishing a sword; she easily dodged it and skewered her enemy's torso, blue liquid falling onto the ground. She heard it drip. Then she removed her spear and the gem fell before turning inside herself. Pearl pierced the gem—perfectly through the middle—with her weapon's tip. In that moment she felt strong and triumphant and ready to kill the entire Homeworld army if it meant making Rose proud. 

She encountered many more in that hour. She was light on her feet, avoiding every attack with grace, striking as if on cue, led on by the rhythm and beat of the battlefield's roar. Enemy after enemy would appear from the front or the side or occasionally behind her, but she heard them all, intercepted them all, destroyed them all. As the battlefield began thinning out she began to tire—but so did her opponents. After some time she was able to check the status of the battle–none of her machines had been shot down or even noticed–and made another call. She felt a weight forming in her chest as she saw the front line's losses; Rose was there, she could tell, but there were many less there to protect her, and so many of her vines had been severed. So she told Ruby, Sapphire, and her own squadron to push forward. 

The situation began improving then—the enemy army's numbers were decreasing at a much faster rate—until Rose's scream. Pearl's head whipped in the direction of it, of the most awful sound she had heard that bounced off the walls of her brain until she felt dizzy. She checked the receiver. The Authority had brought reinforcements. 

Pearl kept pushing the army forward, feeling faint, but there was still resolution in her step. She did not start encountering the stronger gems until another hour of deftly dodging, swiping, stabbing. Her skin was wet with sweat and blood that was not hers. Her matted hair stuck to her forehead, but she could not muster the necessary focus to shift it away. Then she was kicked in the back and toppled to the ground, frantically swerving to avoid the blade that nearly struck her and instead stuck itself into the damp earth. Pearl kicked the gem before her and clamored to her feet before plunging her spear into her enemy. Another was at her heels; in avoiding her strike, Pearl nearly tripped over herself. As she steadied her feet the enemy swung; again she dodged but not completely—the blade struck her arm and she recoiled at its sting. The other gem was larger and slower than her and she was able to discern an opening and strike, felling her. She let out a groan as she eyed the blood dripping down her hand. For a moment calm washed over her; she saw those in front of her–the vaguely familiar, the determined, the weakened–and reflexively loosened the grip on her spear. 

Then there was a loud and terrible cry—it was certainly Rose's—that made Pearl's head spin and throat close. She turned in its direction, craning her neck to no avail before frantically checking the receiver. She heard it clatter on the ground as she felt her hair being gripped roughly and then her face was forced against a nearby rock, sending pain through her skull as she collapsed, reeling, then narrowly avoiding the edge of some jagged knife. Through blurred vision she saw the figure moving toward her and extended her leg, tripping it. Then she grabbed her spear, which had moved away from her, and stabbed the gem repeatedly until it disappeared from her line of sight. Using her spear as leverage, she rose unsteadily, panting. More enemy gems came her way and she dealt with them, but it was with unsteady, desperate, lurching steps. Her mind was becoming fuzzy and her movements more erratic; she was governed by instinct, by the grunts and cries and swings that swirled in the air and in her ears, her vision never fully fixing itself, her still-pounding mind instead adjusting itself as she continued striking. At some point—time was meaningless to her now—after impaling another crookedly through the chest, Pearl heard a familiar voice call her name. She turned quickly, seeing Garnet beside her, gauntlets covering her fists. Pearl furrowed her brow. 

"Your units," she panted. 

"They're under control," said Garnet. "Your gem." 

"My–?" 

Pearl traced her gem with her fingertip and felt that it was cracked halfway. She laughed. 

"I didn't even notice."

"I should take you somewhere safe," said Garnet. 

"I'm fine," Pearl insisted, stabbing an incoming gem before she got too close. 

"Rose can heal you," Garnet said. 

"I'm fine," repeated Pearl, yanking her spear from the gem's body before it disappeared. 

"You don't sound fine." 

"Because you're _distracting_ —" 

Pearl staggered backward and clutched her head as pain radiated down her body, doubling her vision. She felt herself falling, but she was caught by Garnet, who lifted her. Pearl protested weakly, body wriggling faintly. 

" _No_ ," she said. "Is Rose…is she okay? I heard her…"

She looked up at Garnet, who was frowning. 

"She's fine." 

Pearl looked past Garnet and saw that the sky was tinted with pink.


	9. Eyes

When Pearl awoke she was surrounded by darkness. Her body ached and her head throbbed and it was only after minutes of vague and swirling thoughts that she rose frantically before doubling over in pain and falling to the hard, cold floor. 

"Rose!" she screamed with a raspy voice. 

She could look around, and she saw that she was alone. In prison? Rose was nowhere. 

Pearl resigned herself to stillness and began to cry quietly, her chest's convulsions increasing the soreness in her back. She lay there for some time, cries becoming sobs that dissolved into weak whimpers. 

After some time her pulse rapidly rose as a beam of light appeared before her, making her clench her eyes shut. They were coming. They were coming. But what reason was there to care when Rose was dead? If the Authority had captured her then Rose must be dead. She began sobbing again, reluctant to open her eyes. 

"Pearl?" 

That voice was the most beautiful sound; it brought relief and joy and warmth and Pearl pushed past the pain and staggered into the arms of Rose, hugging her tightly. She felt Rose's firm hand on the small of her back. 

"I'm sorry I wasn't here when you woke up—I wanted to be. I didn't think you'd recover quite so quickly." 

"I'm so glad you're alright," Pearl cried. 

Rose chuckled, stroking her hair. "Of course I'm alright—I promised, didn't I?" 

Then she removed her hand and her voice turned darker. "Unfortunately, I can't say the same for everyone else." 

"It's—"

"Ruby, Sapphire, you, and myself," said Rose sounding as though she were on the verge of tears. Pearl's face was still burrowed into Rose's chest, but she could hear footsteps she assume belonged to the other two. So she was not alone with Rose—was that good or bad? Good, she decided, because there were only four of them to protect Earth, should anything happen. _Four of them, should the Authority come back. Four of them against the thousands. Calm down, calm down, Rose is here._

"There are still many…loose ends to tie up. We've nearly finished collecting our own, but we still need to bubble what's left of the enemies' before they _all_ become corrupt," Rose said. "I haven't tried to heal them yet…I haven't had the time or the focus. And then there's Kindergarden—we must get to that before Homeworld reestablishes its link. We already got to the Homeworld-linked warp pads." 

"How long was I…" Unconscious? Comatose? Useless? 

"Oh, just a couple weeks," said Rose. "We've been busy." 

"And now I can help," Pearl said, her voice still weak. 

"After you rest," said Rose. "I'm embarrassed to admit it…I've had such trouble with healing, what with all the stress, I suppose…I haven't healed you fully and I'd hate for you to overwork yourself and go back to the way things were." 

Pearl pouted and sighed but did not object, for Pearl knew Rose was right and she was too weak to face some corrupted gem or unsuspected survivor. So she sat lazily around, Ruby, Sapphire, or both occasionally entertaining her during the gem-collecting interim when Rose would disappear (to, Pearl assumed, practice her healing.) 

Over the course of the next few days Pearl pieced together what happened in those final moments of battle—it was Rose, all Rose. She would be dead without her. Ruby and Sapphire had reached the same conclusion. 

"Thank goodness she had that shield," Ruby said, her voice beginning to quiver. "Without it, we'd be dead." 

Sapphire placed a hand on the gem's thigh, and Ruby turned to her and smiled. 

"We're alive and that's what matters," said Sapphire. "Now we have to keep as many humans alive as we can." 

Pearl was, she thought, much more preoccupied with keeping _Rose_ alive. It occurred to her, then, that she had seen no humans during the war. That must have been a good thing to Rose. 

Once she was well enough, Pearl joined the others as they scoured the battlefield for gems. By that point most of them were gone, but Rose was not one to take chances, and had them circle the area multiple times, going farther and farther out, herself. When she shouted, they all came running. Before her was a large and violent-looking creature, who lumbered toward her with raised fists. Pearl leapt to her side and drew her spear before she could process what she was doing; the thing before her was nearly the shade of the grass beneath them, with a humanoid torso and a snakelike lower body that stretched farther than she could see into the dark. Her heart began to race and she narrowly dodged the thing's incoming blow, pushing Rose out of the way. As she steadied her footing she noticed Ruby coming up behind the strange creature; it noticed her too and swung its heavy tail across the ground, sending the red gem flying along. 

"Ruby!" Pearl heard Sapphire shout. 

Pearl hurled a spear at the thing as Sapphire sent a beam of energy to the creature's head; both struck simultaneously, and the monster fell to its side with a large cry—but it was not dead. Pearl quickly approached it and stuck another weapon through its head; it disappeared, leaving an emerald in its place. As Sapphire ran to Ruby, Pearl picked up the gem and rushed to Rose. 

"Are you alright?" she said breathlessly, offering Rose her free hand. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to—" 

"You saved me, Pearl," said Rose with a smile, squeezing her hand. Pearl blushed. 

"Did you get the gem?" 

"O–Oh—yes," Pearl said, opening her palm. 

"You learned bubbling in Basic, didn't you?" 

Pearl nodded slowly. 

"Of course you have. We've been doing that—with these. And storing them—oh, I have to show you the inside of the temple."

"The _temple_?" repeated Pearl. 

"Our base," said Rose with a chuckle. "That's what we decided to call it." 

Ruby and Sapphire were far away. The breeze was wet and soft and Rose's skin was glistening in the moonlight. Her eyes were bright and her pink lips were gently parted, glimmering and glossy in their mid-smiling rest; Pearl was feeling the tips of her toes against the earth and the buzz in her fingers and the warmth that spread down from her stomach and she wanted so much to take the kneeling Rose in her arms and embrace her, to feel the weight of her chest, to feel the skin of her neck and her lips trail across her body like the blush that was traveling up and up—Rose noticed. 

"Are you alright, Pearl?" she said. 

"Y—Yes," she said, breathing deeply. "I—I—I must still be a bit weak." 

Rose took her other hand. "I don't want you pushing yourself," she said. Then Rose took the gem from Pearl's palm, bubbled it, and tapped it; it disappeared. 

"You can get the next one," Rose said. 

"Wh–Where did it go?" asked Pearl. 

"To the temple," Rose said. 

When they reached the temple, after combing the rest of the field, Rose showed her the temple's inside. 

"Eventually, you'll each have rooms," said Rose, "but now I'm just using it for storage." 

Rows and rows of gems encased in translucent spheres were before her inside a dim and hot room—hot because it was closer to the the Earth's core? Rose nodded. 

"But see if you can solve this—gem deterioration is much slower when they're inside these. The corrupted ones, though—when I take them out of them, my healing doesn't work. I've tried focusing, I've tried incorporating materials…nothing works. But I'll keep trying." She sighed, her shoulders drooping. "All these gems…I hate that we did this to them. I feel like if they heard us out—if they see what we were fighting for—they'd understand and stay here with us. So I'm going to keep working on the corrupted ones. The cracked ones, I haven't gotten up the nerve to heal yet—but now that you're here…I'll release them and talk to them and…well, I hope that's how it'll go." 

The two were alone. Pearl thought it strange she was not inundated with frazzled and frantic thoughts—Rose was going to place herself in danger. _But she had waited for her._ With Rose smiling at her, she felt nothing building up inside her but warmth. Rose took her hand. 

"I want us to do this together. Earth is in our hands now, but I _know_ that you and I and Ruby and Sapphire—we can do it." 

"I'll do anything."


	10. Aid

The group spent the next set of days double-checking the battlefield. Rose, despite what she had told Pearl, was reluctant to begin her healing attempts, and instead took breaks to interact with the group of humans that was nearby. 

"I…I'm tired of the stress," admitted Rose one evening as they sat just outside the temple, her voice small. "I…need some time away from this." 

Pearl placed her hand atop Rose's. "There's nothing wrong with that," she said. "You just saved an _entire_ planet." 

Rose smiled. "You know just what to say to me." 

Pearl blushed. "I…it's not me. You're so wonderful. Earth wouldn't even be here without you."

"But all those gems inside the temple would still be here," she said sadly. Pearl saw a tear dampen her lovely cheek. 

"Sacrifice is necessary in war," Pearl said. "It always has been. Look at it—Look at how many humans you saved. You saved thousands of them and all their descendants."

Rose sighed. "But it's not about the numbers, Pearl—they were _gems_ like us. They had Purposes and friends; they went to parties and read books; they…Oh, I know it was unavoidable. I keep telling myself I don't regret it, and I don't…but I hate that we had to destroy so many gems." 

Pearl looked to Rose, who smiled at her sadly. 

"I—I don't want you to be sad, Rose."

"I know you don't, Pearl," said Rose, who moved closer to her. "You being here is helping me." 

Pearl placed her head on Rose's shoulder and the pink gem stroked her hair gently. Pearl hummed contentedly and the two sat there for hours. 

All Pearl's fear of their fight was deferred until after that conversation, after which it suddenly bubbled up and exploded within her. She had nearly died. Rose had nearly died. Everyone, except for them, had died. They had died because of the Authority and the Authority had many more left. They would come back. They would come back with a bigger army and they would have to be ready or else they would all die. Rose would die. That was why Pearl began accompanying Ruby and Sapphire on their gem hunts, encountering several creatures who had already become corrupt and fighting them—Pearl needed the practice. So when Rose was finally ready to heal the gems again, Pearl was ready to accompany her. 

First Rose removed the bubble around a corrupted gem, but she chose poorly; minutes after its release it transformed into a monster nearly half the size of the room, and it took Pearl and Rose over an hour to fell the thing. They waited a day before she tried again, this time attempting to heal a gem that was only cracked; when she was nearly healed and her form nearly regained, Pearl pulled out her preprepared handcuffs and placed them round the green gem's wrist. 

"Emerald," Rose said softly to the gem as she approached consciousness, "my name is Rose Quartz and I'd like to talk to you." 

" _You_ ," scoffed the gem, "I know who _you_ are. You're their _leader_." 

"I am," said Rose with a nod. 

"Why would I say anything to _you_? You're a traitor."

Pearl grimaced. 

"If Homeworld invaded Earth as it was planning to do," said Rose softly, "then an entire species would have been wiped out—a species with great promise."

"What do you care about other species? What about our own? Don't you know how much _we_ need these planets?" 

"The truth is that we didn't _need_ Earth. There are countless planets—this one was a matter of convenience." 

The green gem scoffed. "You're ignorant." 

" _You're_ ignorant," huffed Pearl. The green gem laughed. 

"You've got someone like _that_ here with you? This is a farce. You must have been desperate."

"On the contrary—" 

"How many do you have left, anyway? I bet it's less than a hundred. The Authority has that many _Reserves_." 

"We do have less than a hundred," said Rose, her voice tremulous, "which is why we need more to join our cause."

The green gem laughed. "You're asking me to _help_ you?" 

There was a loud noise and the green gem's hands were free; in them she held two knives. She lunged toward Rose, who had summoned her shield; but two more knives appeared in the gem's hand and struck Rose before she could move. Pearl summoned her spear unnoticed and pierced it through the green gem's back; she summoned another and stuck it through the gem's head, despite her flailing attempts to grab Pearl's wrist from behind. When the gem went inside herself Pearl picked up her spear and stabbed the emerald through its center repeatedly, seeing its face distort, hearing the triumphant shatter. 

"Pearl!" 

Rose sounded distressed; Pearl dropped her weapon and rushed to Rose's side. 

"Are you hurt?" 

"You'll kill her," said Rose, her face contorted. 

"You—You _don't_ want—"

Pearl felt the shame flush her face. "But she just attacked you." 

"She's confused and angry. We killed her friends."

"She was trying to _kill_ you!" Pearl shrieked. 

Rose placed a hand on her shoulder; she felt her breaths coming quickly, uneven. 

"I know, Pearl, but—I don't want to hurt anymore gems. I certainly don't want to _kill_ them." She gestured to the room. "We've done enough already." 

Pearl felt herself shaking; she nodded curtly. "I—I don't want you doing this again, Rose. It's not safe."

Rose sighed. "I won't do it without you, Pearl."


	11. Loose Ends

Later Rose decided it was time to tour the Kindergarden. Pearl predicted that, without Homeworld maintenance, the young gems would all retreat into themselves; and as they stepped foot onto the rocky ground and to the barren field below, it seemed she was right. 

Ruby and Sapphire surveyed the East end of the facility and Pearl and Rose took the West; Pearl had become quite proficient at bubbling. The two walked side by side, collecting the fallen gems; then out of her eye's periphery Pearl saw movement. She drew her spear and leapt ahead of Rose, motioning for her to stay back; in front of her was a purple blur. It stopped moving as it ran into a crevasse in the side of the mountain; Pearl followed it, her weapon raised. Rose was at her heels. Before them was a purple gem, smaller than any Pearl had seen, cowering in the corner with her arms raised over her head. Pearl stepped forward and the purple gem shrank further. 

"Pearl," said Rose. 

"She could be pretending," said Pearl, "just waiting until I turn around to look at you and then she'll have a blade to your throat." 

" _Pearl,_ " Rose said, her voice soft but insistent. Pearl slowly stepped to the left, making a path for her, weapon still raised. 

"Hello there," said Rose, extending her hand to the strange gem's. Pearl eyed her warily, her breaths shallow. The small gem said nothing, but moved toward her hesitantly, eyeing Pearl. 

"She won't hurt you," said Rose gently. At the insistence of Rose's eyes Pearl lowered her weapon, but she would not put it away. 

"What are you doing here by yourself?" said Rose. 

"I don't know," the gem said, her voice quiet and raspy as though from lack of use. "I mean, we were all here—and then everyone went away. Except me." 

"How long have you been here?" 

"Forever," said the gem with a shrug. Pearl scoffed. 

"Forever?" Rose repeated. 

"As long as I can remember," said the gem. 

"Why did everyone else go away?" asked Rose. 

"I dunno," the gem answered simply. 

"When did they go away?" 

"I dunno," she said again. "It's been a while." 

"I see," said Rose. "What did you do before they went away?" 

The small gem looked at her with confusion. "I…hung out with my friends, climbed on some rocks…I was going to start training. Then everyone disappeared." 

"Training for what?"

"Dunno," she said. "It was a big deal, whatever it was. But I guess it's not happening now. Unless they all left without me."

"I assure you that's not what's happened," Pearl said. The gem looked at her quickly before turning her eyes back to Rose. 

"What are _you_ doing here?" the small gem asked. 

"I…" 

Rose looked to Pearl, who blushed. 

"We—we—" Pearl began slowly "—we're protecting Earth. This planet. That's our job." 

"Ooh, you have a Purpose?" the purple gem said excitedly. 

"Not quite," Rose said with a giggle. "We _had_ Purposes, but we gave them up to come here, because we liked it so much." 

The purple gem's eyes widened and her brows furrowed. "You mean you're…not from Homeworld? To come and get me?" 

Rose's face fell. "No," she said softly. 

"They're not coming to get you," said Pearl. "They're not coming back to Earth." 

"Wh…What?" 

"Shhh," Rose said. "I don't think they'll be coming to get you, but if you want to come with us, we would love to have you."

" _What_?" said Pearl. "We don't know–"

"You can help us protect this planet. It's where you grew up, right?"

The purple gem nodded. 

"Would you like that?" asked Rose gently.

"I—I don't know," the small gem said. "Do you know what happened to my friends?" 

Rose nodded. "They retreated into their gems. We're collecting them now so we can make sure they stay safe." 

"What happened to them?" 

"Some of the ones who tried to hurt Earth were also in charge of where you live," Rose said slowly, "and when we stopped them, they stopped taking care of this place. So most of them went inside themselves—except you. You must be special." 

The purple gem was quiet for some time. Then she clenched her fists; Pearl tightened the grip on her spear. 

"You mean it's your fault everyone is gone?" 

Rose sighed quietly and lowered her eyes, her lashes wet with restrained tears. "It is. I wish we wouldn't have had to…but they would've destroyed the entire planet. If you come with me, I could show you, and then you could understand why we had to do it." 

"Show me around—Earth?" the small gem asked, her voice turning upward. Rose nodded.

"I've never been outside of _here_ ," said the purple gem. "I've never been allowed to."

"It's beautiful," said Rose. "And there are so many creatures other than gems—birds and deer and _humans_. I could show them all to you, and you could help us." 

Pearl felt weak and constricted. She could be a threat. There's no proof she's not a threat, and besides—another to keep out of trouble and teach and there was no proof she was to be trusted. All this she tried to convey to Rose, but her voice faltered. Rose went to Pearl and placed a gentle hand on her shoulder; the rest of her lit at the touch. 

"I know you want to protect me," said Rose with a smile. "I trust her—she would've tried something by now." 

The purple gem looked at them with eyes that conveyed thought, as though she was going over her life and what she knew of theirs and trying to find some thread between them, or perhaps, Pearl thought, trying to calculate the odds of forming one. It was an oddly desperate look, mixed with hope and fear because they were, after all, the ones that had put her into this. Why, Pearl wondered, did she ever feel elated at that she could work for Homeworld? Why did she suggest Earth among the others? Why didn't she say something when they decided on Earth? She had thought that defending Earth would be enough, but there were loose ends like this one. Like her. The purple gem was looking at them expectantly. Pearl looked at her, and thought she saw atonement looking back. 

It was that that compelled her, in addition to Rose; she looked at Amethyst as she looked at the humans, as something full of beauty and potential, to be nurtured and made into something great that would do something great. So that evening, after Rose introduced the young gem to Ruby and Sapphire (who took an immediate liking to her), Pearl sat down with her in the temple and told her Homeworld's history, of its songs and art and efficiency, of its folly, of its triumphs and of Rose and her masterful leadership and bravery and willingness to leave that beauty, to go into the black and come out with fire and the purple gem listened, enthralled, staring at her lips with wide eyes—it was the longest she would ever give to her her attention.


	12. Peace

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading.

The following day, Pearl made Amethyst a makeshift sword and sparred lightly with her, shifting her weight, lifting, leaping, while Amethyst turned and tumbled and ran with aggressive energy; Pearl was relieved it was not a thousand of _her_ she had had to fight. Amethyst enjoyed herself, and for each day thereafter the two would playfully face one another, Rose sometimes appearing and cheering them on (then Pearl was particularly motivated.) Eventually the fun became harder to achieve. 

"You have your shield and you have your cool spear and I've got nothing," she huffed after sinking to the floor mid-match and crossing her legs. "All I've got is this. It's no wonder you're always winning." 

"It's because you move without thinking, Amethyst," said Pearl. "You have to slow down sometimes." 

"Pearl," said Rose, and she placed an arm around her shoulder and led them to a place away from Amethyst's ear. 

"I know you approach everything as though it were real—which is good. It's how you prepare. But—" she paused, her eyes searching "—she's never been confident, and with you beating her each time—"

"I wouldn't say I'm beating her," Pearl said. "She's very skilled: much more than I was. There hasn't been a single time when she's easily—"

"I know, Pearl, I know," Rose said, "but to her, it looks like—she doesn't pay attention to all the little things like you do, just the result. Which is losing." 

"I see," said Pearl. 

It took several attempts before she could successfully and convincingly throw the match; but eventually she did, although shortly after there was no need to. Pearl did not approve of Amethyst's style—it was too erratic—but Rose told her that each gem had their own way, and not to correct her. So she did not. 

Although she was no substitute for Rose, Amethyst's company was enjoyable, found Pearl; she would usually volunteer herself to stay and watch Amethyst while the others kept Earth's dangers in check: someone had to stay with her, the group decided, after she had run off, fascinated and following some creature that had hopped around the temple, and nearly fallen off the cliff. That was when Pearl built the fence. 

One day Rose insisted Pearl complete the day's mission with her—so she left with her instantly. 

"This is simple collection," Rose said, "but I thought you might enjoy it." 

Pearl surveyed their surroundings and recognized it as the Spire, to which she had never been, but knew instantly. Its blue towers curved and stretched to the sky; her stomach leapt. 

"Oh, Rose," she breathed, "it's beautiful." 

Then she realized it was _the Spire_ and she thought of the gems she killed and of Kindergarden and Amethyst and she blushed and said quickly, "But—Earth has such nice architecture _naturally_. 

Rose giggled and smiled. "It does," she said. "I know you must miss Homeworld, with all the stories you tell Amethyst." 

Pearl blushed deeper and felt her stomach sink into slime that slithered up toward her closing throat. "I—I'm sorry, I know—" 

"Don't be sorry," said Rose; she did not sound upset. "It's fine to—we can appreciate things without appreciating everything." 

"Nothing good can come out of a place that bad," Pearl said, not looking at the curling towers. 

"You and I did," said Rose. 

Pearl lowered her eyes. "I miss the stories," she said. "I remember them, but they're not the same. And the looking at the Palace through the window at night when it—when it had that shimmer to it—you remember, don't you?" Then Pearl remembered who she was speaking to and scolded herself. "Of course you do." 

"I do," said Rose. "It was beautiful. The sunset here reminds me of it." 

They searched for artifacts and found several, which Pearl safely transported to the temple; they spoke during this time, leisurely, and Pearl was smiling through its entirety. 

"I'm sorry we haven't spent as much time together," said Rose. "With Amethyst—and with Ruby and Sapphire fusing so often…I'm happy for them, but it's almost like losing a pair of hands. And making another storage room…"

Rose sighed as she picked up and bubbled a grey cube. "And the humans! Their languages are changing and they're making little machines…oh, there's so much I want to do with them, and you, and…I wish there was more time." 

"You don't need to worry," said Pearl. "There's time. You're safe here, even with the missions. You have Garnet protecting you—and me."

"I do," said Rose. She took Pearl's hands and smiled at her, a wide and sure smile. "You're right." 

Pearl felt heat spread through her body and she saw Rose's shining eyes and she was being pushed forward from inside. She burrowed herself into Rose's chest and wrapped her arms around her waist where it tucked in from curving hips. 

"I'm so happy," she said. 

Rose wrapped her arms around her. "I'm so glad," she said. "I am, too." 

"Thank you for taking me here," Pearl said. "Everything—" her voice wavered "—it's all so beautiful."


End file.
